Silicon Valley has been very quiet since the dot com bubble, and almost silent since the economy tanked. Now, there seems to be a light at the end of the dark financial tunnel. Not one, but two technology companies that were running on private capital, OpenTable and Solar Winds, had successful IPOs this week.

Investors gobbled up the offering from OpenTable. Shares on Nasdaq closed 60% higher than their original price. That jump in itself may be a small bubble for the company, but restaurants are standing in line for OpenTable’s reservation system of hardware and software that resides at the host’s podium. Diners whet their appetite at the company’s website, where they can review Diners’ Choice listings in several categories, such as Neighborhood Gem, Vibrant Bar Scene, and Best for Groups. Diners in North America, Europe, and Japan are making online reservations which earn them points towards free dining at affiliated restaurants. The service is free, and reservations are confirmed immediately for that special, last minute, night out.

Solar Winds, with a name that does not clearly convey its purpose, makes network management products. Orion Network Performance Monitor is the company’s enterprise class offering. Solar Winds sells tools for engineers, as well as offering free network monitoring tools, and tutorials to show you how to use them. The company claims to deliver “highly affordable and scalable products that can be downloaded over the web and installed and running in minutes.” I found their website to have an aura of fun, yet with a serious side regarding their products. The Solar Winds’ IPO was a bit more conservative than that of OpenTable, ending only 10% higher than they opened on the New York Stock Exchange.

Part of the shortage of IPOs can be traced to banking and accounting regulations that were put in place after the Silicon Valley meltdown. Also, big investment banks bought the smaller banks that typically worked on taking start-up companies public. We can only hope the door is opening, if only ever so slightly.